Seelpa Keshvala, Ph.D. has been appointed the vice chancellor/dean of Ivy Tech Community College’s Warsaw campus. She will join the college on Aug. 6. Keshvala replaces Randy Maxson, who was appointed executive director of Institutional Effectiveness for Ivy Tech’s North Central Region in December.

Keshvala comes to Ivy Tech from Burlington County College in Pemberton, N.J., where she served as executive director of the Educational Opportunity Fund grant program and recruitment since 2011. She moved into that position after serving as director of the EOF grant program since 2009.

Prior to her work at Burlington County College, Keshvala was the Postdoctoral Research Scholar for the Educational Policy and Leadership Studies (EPLS) Department at the University of Iowa. She also was a professional development coach for Catapult Learning and the business manager for the National Association of Holmes Scholars Alumni, both in Milwaukee.

Keshvala’s teaching experience includes teaching third and fourth grades for Milwaukee Public Schools and a GED/high school equivalency diploma and career seminar instructor for Milwaukee Area Technical College.

She holds a bachelor of science in Elementary Education, a master of science in Curriculum and Instruction and a doctorate in Urban Education with a concentration in Educational Administration, all from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Keshvala’s doctoral dissertation, “Test of a Social Capital Model with Economically Disadvantaged Adolescents: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach,” received the Outstanding Dissertation of the Year award from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She was a Holmes Scholar from 2005-2008. The Holmes Scholar Program recognizes and provides mentorship, peer support and professional development opportunities to doctoral students from underrepresented backgrounds pursuing careers in education.